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Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Doomsday Basics: Living Off the Land

So, you’ve probably thought that if modern society came crashing to a halt – you’d just go ahead and live off the land right? You’ve seen enough deer on the highway to know there’s food, and you’ve done some camping… How hard can it be? Even if you don’t want to be Jeremiah Johnson, there are still some basic outdoor facts and gear you should know about before you try to enter the wilderness. Take a look, and find out what you don’t know about living outside.

Know Your Plants

If you were planning on living off the land or mountains surrounding where you live, would you even know which plants are poisonous? Which would be the most nutritious? When during the growing season is the best time to harvest? All of these things are going to make a huge difference when you’re trying to find food on a cool fall day. Remember, in this scenario there aren’t going to be ANY books or other knowledge resources for you to research after the doomsday – so just think: what would I want to know before I tried to survive off of plant life? Just ask any “urban forager” today – there might be many more edible plants than you ever thought possible in your area!

Hunting basics

Again, this may sound like a no brainer – but if you’ve never actually hunted before, would you have any idea how to properly butcher a deer carcass without spoiling the meat? How would you preserve it before it all rotted? Where should you aim on a deer’s body? You need to find out the natural migration habits of your local game so you don’t end up wasting all of your limited energy simply trying to find the wild beasts. Take advantage of the fact that ammo is cheap, and do your target practice now (stocking up on ammo and weapons is a whole other story.) The point is, stocking up on hunting ammo is obvious – having the slightest idea what to do when you’re trying to catch dinner is another.

Medical Knowledge

This is good idea in preparing for an apocalypse no matter where you plan to live, but it’s especially necessary in the woods. Knowing basic medical knowledge like what certain bumps on your tongue mean, or why skin turns yellow can save your life. There are going to be sometimes you’re just plain screwed without a modern hospital – but there will be other times where if you know how to act, you could save your life. Read some books (and make sure to print some too) on the most common environmental diseases and their immediate treatments. See what kind of plants found in your area can aid these illnesses. Also, know you’re human anatomy. A modern Emergency Medical Technician get’s their training in about ¼ of a year. Sure, they’re not doctors, but they know where every major organ and artery in the human body is, and how to best respond to it in an emergency trauma situation. Do you? Take some time, do the research, it could save your life.

Review

Remember, actually living off the wild land is all about what you don’t know you don’t know. You have to do some research, take some mock camping trips, and practice what it would be like. Maybe you’re more of the “build a fortress” kind of prepper, than this advice isn’t for you. The truth is, when zombies are crawling all over the city streets – you’re going to be much better off in the wilderness.

Author Bio: Tyler Watkins is a online blogger and web contributor, his content can be found across many website genres.